Verse 2289-2290

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

वर्णानामपि न त्वेवमकौटस्थ्येऽपि सेत्स्यति ।
नित्येषु सत्सु वर्णेषु व्यवहारात्क्रमोदयः ॥ २२८९ ॥
घटादिरचना यद्वन्नित्येषु परमाणुषु ।
तदभावे हि निर्मूला रचना नावधार्यते ॥ २२९० ॥

varṇānāmapi na tvevamakauṭasthye'pi setsyati |
nityeṣu satsu varṇeṣu vyavahārātkramodayaḥ || 2289 ||
ghaṭādiracanā yadvannityeṣu paramāṇuṣu |
tadabhāve hi nirmūlā racanā nāvadhāryate || 2290 ||

“In the case of the letters however, such eternality would not be possible if they were not really unchangeable; it is only when the letters themselves are eternal that their order can appear through usage; just in the same manner as the jar and other things are made only when the eternal atoms are there; in the absence of these, the making of these things would have no basis at all, and none such is ever perceived.”—[Ślokavārtika—eternality of words, 290-292].—(2289-2290)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

Like the Order, the Letters also could not be regarded as eternal in usage, though not unchangeably eternal, and the phenomena of the comprehension of the meanings of words explained on that basis.

Question:—Why can it not be so explained?

Answer:—‘It is only when the Letters, etc. etc.’—If the Letters were unchangeably eternal,—in that case, the usage would be possible through tradition among people and thence the appearance of the Order; i.e. the Order would acquire its existence; as for example, the making of the Jar, etc. proceeds from the Atoms as their basis.

In some places, the reading is ‘kramādayaḥ’ (for ‘kramodayaḥ’); in which case the ‘ādi’ would include their ‘Connection’, ‘Recognition’ and so forth.

Question:—‘Why cannot the making (and appearance, of Jar, etc. and Order) be possible without the eternality of the Letters and the Atoms?’

Answer:—‘In the absence of these, etc. etc.’—‘in the absence of these’ stands for ‘if both, the Letters and the Atoms, were not unchangeably eternal’, Says the Opponent—Just as the Atoms are the constituent cause of the Jar and other things,—so of the Letters also, there would be subtler constituent parts; as has been declared (by Grammarians) that—‘Of Letters there are constituent parts, of which the Letters themselves are only the fourth stage Under the circumstances, how is it that Letters are described as unchangeably eternal?

Answer:—This does not affect our case. It has been explained in course of the Refutation of Sphoṭa (Ślokavārtika), that Letters have no constituent parts.—(2289-2290)